Friends of NRA Announce Volunteers of the Year

The NRA has recently annouced their Friends of NRA Volunteers of the Year for both regional and local levels.

The National Rifle Association is pleased to announce their 2013 Friends of NRA Volunteer of the Year recipients, recognizing outstanding efforts for the grassroots fundraising program at the local and regional levels.
Area Volunteers of the Year, selected by NRA Field Representatives, were evaluated on a number of criteria including banquet tickets sold, underwriting received and years of service. Recipients were awarded a ‘2013 Friends of NRA Volunteer of the Year’ jacket along with special recognition from their NRA Field Representative.

From the pool of Area Volunteers, a committee of senior NRA staff selected the recipients of the prestigious Region Volunteer of the Year award. In addition to receiving the ‘2013 Volunteer of the Year’ jacket, Region Volunteers of the Year will be honored guests at the 2014 NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits in Indianapolis, Indiana, where they will receive special recognition for the accomplishments during the National NRA Foundation Banquet on Thursday, April 24.

“Volunteers are the backbone of Friends of NRA and its mission to preserve America’s shooting sports traditions,” said NRA’s Director of Volunteer Fundraising Sarah Budi. “The commitment of our Volunteers of the Year is beyond reproach and we are honored for them to be a part of our organization.”

Created in 1992, Friends of NRA is a National Rifle Association grassroots fundraising program for the shooting sports. All net proceeds from Friends of NRA events are allocated to qualified local, state, and national programs through The NRA Foundation, America’s leading charitable organization in support of the shooting sports. The program has reached more than 2.8 million people and raised over $550 million for the shooting sports in its 22 year history.

Below are the 2013 Friends of NRA Region and Area Award winners and their committees:

Region Volunteers of the Year:

  • Eastern Region: Eastern Virginia and Eastern Maryland: Pat Patterson, Southern Commonwealth & Greater Richmond
  • Central Region: Kentucky: Mitchell Howard, Big Rivers
  • Mid West Region: Oklahoma: Travis Mann, Northwest Oklahoma
  • Southern Region: Texas (Southern): Darrell & Sandra Hester, Mid-Coast
  • Western Region: California (Mid): Stan Rothfuss, Mariposa, Oakhurst, 3 Rivers, Madera, & Patterson

Area Volunteers of the Year:

Eastern Region:

  • Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York (Lower) and Rhode Island: Jonathan Hirons, Rhode Island
  • Delaware and Pennsylvania (Eastern): Donna Gerz, Lancaster County
  • Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont: Cheryl Ziembroski, Northeast Kingdom
  • New York (Upper): Carmen & Joan Heitczman, Orange County / Hudson Highlands
  • North Carolina (Eastern): Elvie Jackson, Greater Triangle
  • North Carolina (Western): Ricky Profitt, Guilford County
  • Ohio (Northern): Todd Figard, North East Ohio
  • Ohio (Southern): Sean Maloney, Butler County
  • Pennsylvania (Western): William Tylavsky, PA’s 1st
  • Virginia (Eastern), Maryland (Eastern) and Washington, D.C.: Pat Patterson, Southern Commonwealth & Greater Richmond
  • West Virginia, Maryland (Western) and Virginia (Western): Lee Godbey, Seneca Trail

Central Region:

  • Illinois (Northern): Christina Cira, East Central Illinois
  • Illinois (Southern): Ted Buck, Jr., Mt. Vernon Area
  • Indiana: Jason Franklin, Falls of the Ohio
  • Iowa: John Allen, Founders
  • Kentucky: Mitchell Howard, Big Rivers
  • Michigan: Tom & Bonita Tompkins, Northwest Michigan
  • Missouri: Amy Stilfield, State Fair Area
  • Nebraska: Jim McChesney, Platte Valley
  • Tennessee: Mark Lee, Davidson County
  • Wisconsin: Kellie Walsh, State Line

Mid West Region:

  • Colorado: Jim Eckersley, North Colorado
  • Kansas: Bruce & Mary McCune, Butler County
  • Minnesota: Leroy Van Brunt, South Metro
  • Montana: Tara Kiel, Southeast Montana
  • New Mexico: Jim & Dorothy Greene, Mountainair
  • North Dakota: Stephanie Sandstrom, Burliegh County & Morton County
  • South Dakota: Mike Deakins, Mitchell
  • Oklahoma: Travis Mann, Northwest Oklahoma
  • Utah: Denise Knight, Ogden
  • Wyoming: Kathy Watt, Southeast Wyoming

Southern Region:

  • Alabama: Larry Jones, Lake Eufaula
  • Arkansas: Kelly Ford, Independence
  • Florida (Northern): Connie Davis, Silver River
  • Florida (Southern): Jennifer Williamson, Martin County
  • Georgia: Donna Wyatt, Sumter Area
  • Louisiana: Bill Laird, Ark-LA-Tex
  • Mississippi: Chris Haycraft, MS Delta
  • South Carolina: Faye Stoudemire, Mid-Carolina
  • Texas (Northern): John & Kim Capps, Ellis County, Lone Star Oil Shale, & Alliance Corridor
  • Texas (Southern): Darrell & Sandra Hester, Mid-Coast
  • Texas (West): Betty Deneen, Taylor County

Western Region:

  • Alaska (Northern): Sarah Espelin, Upper Susitna
  • Alaska (Southern):  Ken & Marie Murdock, Alaska State
  • Arizona: Hugh Winderweedle, White Mountain
  • California (Central): John Howe, Kern County
  • California (Mid): Stan Rothfuss, Mariposa, Oakhurst, 3 Rivers, Madera, & Patterson
  • California (North Eastern): Barry Blaylock, Tuolumne County
  • California (North Western): Robert Hampson, North Santa Cruz County
  • California (Southern): Eric & Sue Johnson, East County
  • Nevada: John Madden, Reno/Sparks, Modesto, Carson City, & Carson Valley
  • Hawaii and Oregon: Katie Jones, Douglas County
  • Idaho: Craig Seymour, Upper Snake River
  • Washington: Steve Dazey, North Puget Sound

About the National Rifle Association
Established in 1871, the National Rifle Association is America’s oldest civil rights and sportsmen’s group. Five million members strong, NRA continues its mission to uphold Second Amendment rights and is the leader in firearm education and training for law-abiding gun owners, law enforcement and the military. Visit http://nra.org.